On this day, workers at Saab-Scania in São Bernardo do Campo stopped production, helping ignite a wider strike wave in the ABC industrial region (near São Paulo). These actions signaled a shift toward more independent, shop-floor-driven labor organizing under Brazil’s military government. The mobilization helped bring national attention to metalworkers’ demands over wages and representation.
Metalworkers in the ABC region began a broad strike amid disputes over wage adjustments and labor conditions. Large assemblies and coordinated stoppages increased pressure on employers and the state-controlled labor system. The strike helped build a public identity for the São Bernardo metalworkers’ union leadership, including Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva.
Brazil’s Amnesty Law was signed, restoring rights to many political exiles and prisoners from the dictatorship era. While controversial for also shielding some state agents, it widened political space for opposition organizing. This opening helped unions, community groups, and activists connect labor struggles to broader demands for democracy.
The Workers’ Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores, PT) was launched by a mix of trade unionists, activists, intellectuals, and Catholic groups linked to liberation theology. The party aimed to give organized labor and social movements an electoral voice, building on the ABC strike experience. PT’s creation marked a new step from workplace mobilization toward a national political project.
After escalating tensions and failed negotiations, ABC metalworkers voted to halt work, launching a large strike centered in São Bernardo do Campo and nearby cities. The action challenged the dictatorship-era labor framework that limited independent bargaining. Churches and community networks became key meeting and support sites as official spaces were restricted.
Police arrested Lula, then president of the São Bernardo and Diadema Metalworkers’ Union, during the government’s repression of the 1980 strike. The detention highlighted the risks union leaders faced under the dictatorship and drew attention from human-rights groups. It also strengthened the link between labor activism and political opposition.
Thousands of delegates met at the First National Conference of the Working Class (1ª CONCLAT) in Praia Grande, São Paulo. The meeting helped unify “new unionism” currents and supported plans for a national labor center independent of state control. This coordination strengthened the organizational bridge between unions and PT-aligned social movements.
The Unified Workers’ Central (Central Única dos Trabalhadores, CUT) was founded in São Bernardo do Campo during the 1st National Congress of the Working Class. CUT aimed to coordinate unions across sectors and provide a stronger national voice for workers during the democratic transition. Its creation institutionalized the organizing networks that grew out of the ABC strike wave.
A major “Diretas Já” (Direct Elections Now) rally took place at Praça da Sé in São Paulo, part of a nationwide campaign for direct presidential elections. Trade unions and allied movements helped mobilize large crowds, tying democratic demands to jobs, wages, and social rights. Although Congress did not approve direct elections immediately, the campaign increased pressure for political change.
Brazil’s new Constitution was promulgated, consolidating the transition away from dictatorship-era rules. It expanded civil and social rights and reshaped democratic institutions, creating a new legal setting for labor and political participation. The constitution became a key reference point for unions and parties arguing for stronger workplace protections and representation.
Luiza Erundina of the Workers’ Party won the São Paulo mayoral election, giving PT leadership of Brazil’s largest city. The victory showed that the party built from labor and neighborhood organizing could govern major urban institutions. It also helped PT expand beyond its early industrial-union base into broader municipal politics.
Brazil held its first direct presidential election in decades, with a first round and a runoff. Lula, a former metalworker and union leader who helped found PT, advanced to the second round against Fernando Collor de Mello. Even though Lula lost, the campaign showed how the metalworkers’ movement had evolved into a nationwide electoral force.
In the 1994 general election, PT again ran Lula for president, but Fernando Henrique Cardoso won in the first round. Official election reporting by Brazil’s electoral authority (TSE) recorded the final results and confirmed the election date as October 3, 1994. By this point, the union-rooted project launched in the ABC strikes had become a stable national party and labor network, even while it still faced major electoral and policy limits.
Brazilian Metalworkers' Union and the emergence of the Workers' Party (PT) (1978–1994)